A UK security company is warning that recent events in the banking sector are likely to prompt a rise in fraud. First Cyber Security is urging customers with Internet banking accounts to be wary of emails purporting to be from banks which have been named as being involved in takeovers and mergers. According to a [...]
French bank Crédit Agricole has appointed Patrick de Fraguier to the post of head of Strategy at Crédit Agricole Asset Management (CAAM). De Fraguier has been deputy head of Strategy at CAAM for the last two years, and will ascend to his new post on 1 October. Prior to his present position he served as [...]
Bradford & Bingley (B&B) has announced cost cutting measures that will result in 370 job losses. The beleaguered buy-to-let lender aims to save £15 million by closing its Borehamwood mortgage centre and removing around 50 mortgage advisers from its branches. The bank will also be scrutinising its head office support functions but no branch closures [...]
Savers who have carefully placed their money with different providers to take advantage of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme’s (FSCS) guarantee of £35,000 per individual, should take a look at FSCS small print. According to a report in The Guardian, they may not receive full compensation in the event of the collapse of a bank [...]
Early Christmas shoppers are being warned not to load up their store cards unless they want a financial headache that could last well into the New Year. According to Moneyfacts, interest rates on store cards are being increased in time for the festive season. The financial website has reported that women’s clothing retailers, Karen Millen, [...]
German bank WestLB has announced the appointment of Dr. Volker Brühl as head of BU Corporate & Structured Finance Products. Dr. Brühl will assume his post, at the latest, by 1 April next year, and will also gain membership of the divisional board of the Corporates & Structured Finance division. He joins the firm from [...]
Crédit Agricole S.A.’s chairman and CEO, René Carron and Georges Pauget, are to propose that Jean-Yves Hocher and Bernard Mary be appointed as joint deputy CEOs. The recommendation is to be made at the bank’s next board of directors meeting on 1 October and, should it be enacted, Hocher and Mary will join Jacques Lenormand [...]
Deutsche Bank AG has announced that it has established Deutsche Securities and Services (DSS) within Dubai. The United Arab Emirates’ regulator, the Securities and Commodities Authority, has given permission for the DSS to engage in custody business. Deutsche Bank’s CEO for the Middle East and North Africa, Henry Azzam, has described the establishment of DSS [...]
Credit Suisse has received a licence to conduct operations within Bahrain. The licence will permit the investment bank to expand its geographical presence in the region by setting up an office in Manama, Bahrain. The Central Bank of Bahrain has given the green light for the granting of the Investment Firm Licence, which will allow [...]
The Goldman Sachs Group has reached an agreement with Berkshire Hathaway whereby Hathaway will purchase $5bn of perpetual preferred stock via a private offering. The stock will be callable at any time with a 10% premium, and yield a 10% dividend. Berkshire Hathaway is also, as part of the agreement, to receive warrants to purchase [...]
Savers with the Post Office are to benefit from a rise in the amount of compensation cover on money held on deposit. The Post Office scheme is operated by Bank of Ireland, which is regulated by the authorities in Dublin. The Irish government has announced that it is raising the level at which savings in [...]
Susan Swanezy has become the new head of Distribution for the Real Estate Products Group (“REPG”) with Credit Suisse. In her newly created role she will be tasked with the co-ordination of marketing, product development and distribution for real estate investment businesses and vehicles. REPG consists of Credit Suisse’s real estate investment management businesses, such [...]
Nomura Holdings, Japan’s largest securities broker, is acquiring Lehman Brothers’ European investment unit. Last week’s collapse of Lehman Brothers saw the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers as administrator to the investment bank’s European businesses. Details of the transaction have not been disclosed but Bloomberg has reported the sum is nominal, according to a spokesman for Nomura. The [...]
Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) has announced the appointment of Abdulla Al Hamli as the firm’s new CEO. Al Hamli brings to the role nine years of experience with the bank, and has previously served as Chief of Operations and Information Technology with DIB. He has occupied a number of senior positions in both the public [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has published figures for August which show credit card spending holding steady at £7.3 billion, in line with recent monthly averages. Consumers repaid £7.4 billon during the month but the total outstanding debt rose by £400 million, to £33.6 billion, once interest and charges had been included. According to the [...]
Independent investment bank Collins Stewart has bolstered its Oil & Gas equity research capabilities with the appointment of Jamie Maddock. Maddock leaves behind Brewin Dolphin Investment Banking to join the firm, and joins the Oil & Gas team. The team is led by Gordon Gray, a leading analyst who formerly worked for JP Morgan. The [...]
UK payment services association, Apacs, has reported a major increase in the volume of credit and debit card holders taking advantage of measures that can prevent online shopping fraud. According to Apacs, over 25 million cards are now registered with secure online payment systems, Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode. Cardholder registration in August was [...]
Megabank Mitsubishi UFJ, Japan’s largest bank, has agreed to buy 20% of US investment bank, Morgan Stanley, for an estimated $9 billion. The move is aimed at keeping Morgan Stanley independent but follows China Investment Corporation’s acquisition of a 9.9% stake in the business last year and means that almost one-third of the bank’s stock [...]
A report from the Royal Mint, which regularly samples coinage in circulation, has revealed that 2% (or one in fifty) £1 coins in circulation in the UK could be counterfeit. In total 30 million coins in the nation’s trouser pockets, purses and piggy banks could be the work of forgers who are evidently making satisfactory [...]
